Masonry
by Yudantaiteki
Summary: Tyler's uncle has come to town, bringing the werewolf-vampire war back, and Matt finds himself caught in the middle.
1. Mystic encounters

**I hope you share with me the keen interest in the character of Mason Lockwood, portrayed in the TV-series by Taylor Kinney: I found him inspiring (and hope to do so for many episodes to come!), not to mention smoking hot, and wondered how he would pair with some guy of my interest... This fanfiction is an experiment and a work in progress, I've only written one chapter (this short prelude) so far but I have more to come: please review if you like it! And if you have any suggestions to improve my writing style, or about the plot, or my characters or if you want to tell me whatever you feel like you should tell me, please let me know! **

**It is rated M because of gay content and action in chapters to come; do NOT read if you're not OK with that.**

**I sincerely hope there is no legal need for a seriously written disclaimer, because I obviously don't own any of this.**

The Mystic Grill was as crowded as usual, that night: the raging storm wasn't getting any feebler, outside, and, though the redundant name would probably discourage any visitor, there weren't many hangouts in Mystic Falls, so a fair share of the city was in.

Bonnie had just joined Elena and Caroline at their table in an unlikely reunion, Mr. Saltzman was quietly sipping whiskey at the counter, side by side with an equally silent Mason Lockwood, and Sheriff Forbes had just come out of the restroom. As for Matt, he was playing pool with Tyler and Stefan, wondering about Caroline and the way he left her. Maybe it wasn't right to dump her that way, maybe they could really have a future together…"or maybe mom was right, and she was just a rebound girl", thought he in conclusion. He wasn't really in pain, after all; it had been tougher with Elena.

"You should get over her, dude" said Tyler to Matt.

"I have, I'm done with her" answered him, leaving no space for an allusive comment, which was due nonetheless.

"So you say you're cool?"

"Yeah."

While that reply was closing the talk, he also pocketed the final ball, winning the game.

"You done playing already?" asked Mason, walking to them.

"We could play a 2 versus 2, if that's OK with you guys" diplomatically replied Tyler.

"I'm Matt, anyhow…we had a chance to meet at the ceremony, but you know, I think you can't remember everyone…"

"Oh, that's cool…I remember you. You were with that girl, the blonde one." He was an acute observer.

"Err.- not anymore. We broke up."

Mason Lockwood was not the kind of person you'd describe as an open book. It wasn't easy to read behind his shaped body, confident attitude and intriguing look, yet Matt felt that, strangely enough, he was relieved.

"Sorry…I'm sure you'll find someone else. So, what are the teams?"

"I don't want to play any family reunion here, so I'm choosing Stefan" said Tyler

"I don't either, knowing the way you play" said him, jokingly "And you, Matt, I really hope you can play better than my nephew!"

"I hope I won't disappoint you, Mr. Lock…"

"Mason. You can cut the formal crap when you're talking with me"

"Okay Mason, I hope we'll play a'right!"

"Good, good, that's the feeling!" said Mason, putting one arm around Matt's shoulders, like a good old friend would.

Matt felt his heartbeat suddenly thrum against his ribcage, his stomach become fluttery as the heat of Mason's hand passed through his T-shirt, and as he realised what had just happened he blushed.

But no-one seemingly noticed and the pool game started.


	2. Problem solved

**Thank you so much for the reviews and the favourites! :D**

**I think I'll write short chapters like this once every one or two days... or perhaps I should just update once a week with a juicier content injection. What do you guys think would work best?**

Mason had liked the evening: even though he was out of his pertaining demographic boundaries, he'd enjoyed the pool time with his nephew's friends nonetheless, especially with the broad-shouldered Matt. If his past were any hint, he knew he could fall on a boy as well as on a girl; still the sudden urge to be in contact with him had caught him off guard. Had he had Damon's rudeness with innuendos, they could be in bed together already…even so, anyway, he knew Matt had got some of his tentative of flirts, and the two were having quite an harmony until Damon came by, breaking the charm of the new encounter. Matt was hot: when Mason first sought a physical contact, he had felt his tough back, his muscles so carved he could feel their relief with his fingers as he had passed his hand…resting on his shoulder, he felt it move while talking, adding the certainty of tact to the sensation of strength coming from his look. He wanted to be friendly at the look of the other guys, but at the same time Matt to understand that there was some kind of attraction, even if vaguely stated. They'd had some flirting all along the night, probably helped by one or two drinks, and he turned out to actually overcome the jock stereotype. He was an interesting guy, beyond the good looks; he felt him quite close, as they both had grown up by themselves, though for different reasons: Matt had a damaged family, Mason was a rebel soul with lycanthropic issues.

Issues he was going to solve.

Walking on the pathway to the Salvatore mansion, he couldn't stop thinking about Damon. He knew he'd try to kill him, and also knew prevention was better than cure. That wasn't the reason he was going to the house, though. He just wanted to talk.

"Come on in, please" said Damon opening the door before he even knocked. "We can have a seat in the living room"

He noted the creepy but luxurious furniture all over the house, and the grandeur of the living room was a clear sign of wealth. Not that it was difficult for a vampire to have it, he thought.

"What can I offer you for a drink?"  
"I'd have a scotch, no ice"

"Great"

"Sorry for stabbing you, last evening"

"Never mind, it happens to shameless bastards like you."

"So, to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?"  
"I just wanted to talk a little. Try to get to know what are your intentions. I hoped your brother would be here too"

"He's at Helena's. Here's your drink"  
"Thanks" said Mason, and started sipping. As he put his glass on the crystal table in front of him, he felt a bitter taste in his mouth, taking his tongue and throat. "Have you put Aconitum in my…?" he started the sentence, but never ended it for the chokes and coughs.

"Yep, I did. Wolfsbane…how could I not think of it before?" replied Damon, watching his 'enemy' fall unconscious. "You can come down, Stefan!" yelled him at his brother.

"We've got 15 minutes to take it to the dump and burn him" explained him to Stefan as they put heavy steel chains around his wrists and legs and locked them up.

"Let's go"

Stefan and Damon left in the middle of the night, dragging the soulless body of Mason by the chains. As they reached the dump, they drew a 5-pointed star with pure water, put Mason in the middle and soaked his clothes with gasoline. Then Damon lit a match and watched his troubles burn away.

"Let's go, Stefan. It's been taken care of."

The two brothers left, leaving the body burn between the flames.


	3. Amidst the fire

Amidst the fire, Mason suddenly opened his eyes.

"Do they seriously think they'd take me down like this?" thought Mason, breaking his chains in a mighty stretch of his arms and getting out of the fire. He waited a little, being smug about his figure standing still as his clothes were burning and completely self-satisfied at his own abilities. It wasn't so bad to give guilt a rest, sometimes.

He'd faked his own death, as curiosity had got the upper hand of his good senses, and he was willing to risk being actually killed to know just how far the two could get. He hoped nobody could remember how to kill a werewolf, and this proved him right…the most interesting piece of information that emerged, though, was that not Stefan either was to be trusted.

He'd better get home soon, or the garbage trucks would come and see a completely naked man, his body still covered with ashes and dirt, standing in the middle of a dump. It'd have been so much more practical if he just shifted, and got home as a wolf…but this wouldn't coincide with the story he told to the Salvatore brothers. He had sustained that he couldn't control the transition, that when he was a wolf he had no control over his actions…however, it wasn't exactly true. Firstly, he was forced to transition just on full moon, and could shift whenever he wanted to outside of that; then he could control himself when he was a wolf, it was just a matter of practice. Not that it was easy to restrain himself from killing vampires, though; centuries of evolution had turned them into his prey of election. He successfully avoided killing Stefan when he first jumped out of his truck, and this was already something to be proud of.

In the end, he just shifted and ran home, sneaking into his brother's house from the back door and assuring himself nobody was watching in the meanwhile.

Hearing him come back, Tyler went to his uncle's room and shuddered seeing him all dirty, again, like he had been the night he first learned about his supernatural ability.

"What happened to you?"  
"Wasn't it my line? You know, when I first went on stage."

"It doesn't mean I can't use it too"

"OK then." He paused, taking a deep breath "Tyler, I need you to get out of town for a while"

"What's up?"

"I just need you to leave, OK?"  
"No, it's not OK man! You've come here, dumped all sort of supernatural family secrets all over me, now you're saying I should go and you won't even tell me why…come on dude, what's up with you?"

"I…Tyler, I didn't want you to get involved in any of this. You've fallen there for my fault, I want to get you out of it."

"In what, uncle? Talk to me, please. Does my mother even know about you?"

"You shouldn't mix with supernatural events, especially not now as you're only human"  
"OK, now I'm ONLY human. Didn't know someone could ever be so proud of killing somebody"

Tyler went back to his room, shutting the door behind his back and locking it. He knew his uncle could kick in the door without blinking, but it was more of a formal statement than an actual limitation.

Mason, in the meanwhile, was touched by those words. He hadn't thought about his first transition in a long time, and, though the wound wasn't open anymore, it surely didn't help to remember that look upon his victim's face.

He was only 19, at the time, he was in dire need of money and, already back then, he had found out to be quite strong, so he had made a routine out of stealing. He was driving through a small town, and the most obvious place to assault was the local liquor store. As the owner tried to react, pointing his gun to him, he knew he was over and made a desperate move, trying to separate his hand from the gun; as he ripped the gun away from his hand and threw it behind his back, the two engaged in a fight. Just one survived it; the other ended up with a broken neck. All of a sudden, as he was leaving the store with his pockets filled, he fell on the ground, just after the exit door. He felt his throat choke, his hands clench into his fists; his chest muscles were exploding, all of his body was burning with pain and a sudden, overwhelming energy. He tried to scream for help, but all he got was an urge to lift his head up and howl; he screamed his lungs out, howling to the beautiful, full moon that was hanging in the sky. The reason he hadn't got into details with his nephew was the sake of his reputation.

"Tyler? Can we please talk?" Mason was knocking on his door, expecting no response at all. Surprisingly, his voice came from the inside:

"Come on in." he walked in, and sit on his bed. "I didn't want to hurt you, uncle Mason"

"I know you didn't."

"But…it looks like a blessing, more than a curse"

"Tyler, it has more implications than you can imagine. One of it is, you'll be haunted by vampires. You'll never be in full control of your wolf side, you've seen me last night!, I could've easily killed you all."

"Vampires? You mean, like Dracula?"

"More like Stefan and Damon Salvatore."

"They're vampires?"

Tyler learned an awful lot of things, that night, about worlds he didn't even imagine. What he did not learn, though, was that there was another way to trigger the curse, a way Bonnie was trying to learn about to get new, powerful allies.


End file.
